It's NOT A Crush
by lokieros
Summary: The day after his amazing mini killer discovery, it was back to work as usual for David Hodges... or WAS it...?


Shaking his head he brought himself back to reality. How long had he been staring? Quickly he looked around, making sure no one noticed, then casually he got back to his work, putting all thoughts of the woman accross the hall out of his mind. At least... trying to. He typed a few things in the computer, looked at a couple other things, read a text message he wasn't aware of getting, all the while his thoughts wandering towards the lab adjacent to his own. The beeping of the machine next to him reminded him of where he was.  
"Dammit Dave!" He repremanded himself, once again tearing his eyes away from Miss Simms. (who, unlike him, was hard at work)

"Talking to yourself again, Einstein?" The voice came from behind him, making him almost jump out of his seat. Defensively, he ran his hand through his hair, then put it to rest on the back of his neck.

"Sara," he exclaimed, throwing on his snarky grin, hoping to God she didn't notice how nervous he was.  
"You know, they make phones 2-way for a reason, it would help if you answered your texts once in a while. Got my results?" Her voice was casual, but her eyes, the eyes of a scientist, were studying, analizing, trying to figure out what he was up to the few seconds before she wandered into his lab.

"Er... uh, yes. They're just printing." He studdered. Turning to grab the paper ejecting itself from the printer, he almost tripped over his own feet. _What is wrong with you? You're not in high school! Get a grip!_ He tried to read the information the paper held, but after three times of scanning it, nothing stuck. Finally he just thrusted it in Sara's direction. "Here. Happy?"

Giving him a look, Sara took the paper from his outstreached hand. She continued to study him, paying no attention to the possibly case-breaking information on the paper she held. Then, without taking her eyes from him, she reached for the door. "Thank you, Hodges," she said finally, reading what she needed to from the paper in her hand, and giving him one last glance before turning to leave.

David let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Looking at the small workload on his desk, then taking a quick glance at the lab accross the hall, he decided he needed a break. As he made his way toward the break room, thoughts of yesterday's events ran through his head. He knew Wendy was angry with him, but WHY was it bothering him so much? So she didn't like him. Big deal. No one did, he learned to live with it. He plunked himself down at the breakroom table, not even bothering to grab a cup of coffee, and rested his chin in his hand. He had been so happy at the end of the previous shift. The proud look in Grissom's eyes, paired with the satisfaction of doing something great made him almost happier than he could bear. That is, until he saw Wendy. Just the dissapproving glance she gave him that morning dampened all thoughts of greatness and glory.

"_If Gil Grissom were here, he'd slap your face._" The words seemed to play like a broken record in his head. The background music going on behind every thought. They stung when she said them. Like a knife in the heart. Now every time he replayed them it was like putting salt in the wound. He shook his head again. What was it about Wendy that made him act this way? It was almost as if...  
"No," he whispered to himself, "no. I don't." Defiantly he pounded his fist on the table. "I do NOT have a crush on Wendy Simms."

After a small debate with himself, it was decided. The only way he was going to get Wendy off his mind would be to confront her. His problem was that there was unresolved tension between the two of them, and he couldn't think straight until it was resolved. No crush. No feelings whatsoever. Just tension. Still unsure of what exactly he was going to say to her, he got up from his seat and headed towards her lab.

"Simms." He stated blantly, standing firmly at the entrance to her workspace. The brunette turned around briskly. She was annoyed, David could see it in her wide eyes, and that's when he realized he still had no idea what he wanted to say to her. After staring at the man standing stupidly in her doorway for several seconds, Wendy finally sighed and broke the silence.

"Hodges... I have a lot of work to do. What do you want?" Her tone told him he better say something fast, but his brain still wasn't cooperating. _Come on Dave, what did you even come in here for? Stop being an idiot! Just... say... something..._ They stood and stared at each other for what seemed like forever, their little confrontation catching the attention of the lab rat busibodies that surrounded them. Wendy finally got fed up.

"Fine," she started again, "if you wo-"

Her sentence was interrupted as David Hodges quickly eliminated the small distance between them and took her lips in his. Warmth spread over her as she surrendered to the soft, welcoming kiss. For a moment she let herself be taken over by emotion, let herself feel things she was so afraid to the day before... but only for a moment. The yells and whistles of their audience brought her back to reality. Quickly, she broke away from David, and backed up, successfully knocking all kinds of things from her desk. Looking down at the _2 days worth_ of workload scattered on her floor, she was suddenly infuriated.

"Oh, my.. I can't BELIEVE I... you... you think you can just WALTZ in here and... uhg!" She stared at the man in front of her, wishing she could slap him, not wanting to give into the little part of her that just wanted to kiss him again. "UGH!" She yelled again, clenching her fists and quickly walking past David to get to the door.

"Wait," he said, disappointed at how weak and whiney he sounded. Shaking his head at himself, wondering what the hell had gotten into him, he turned, and with a little more resolve he shouted, "WAIT!" But the door had closed. Through the glass walls he watched as Wendy walked down the hall and out of sight. He could feel the stares of the lab rats on him. _What did I DO... what do I do now...?_  
Suddenly, like a tidal wave, realization spread through him. He knew what he wanted, and he was damned if he was going to let it get away. Not caring anymore how stupid he looked, he raced out the door and down the hall, desperately looking for the woman who stole his heart.

"Wendy!" the name echoed through the near-empty halls of the lab. David could hear his own voice bounce through the hallway, getting more and more angry at how stupidly desperate it sounded. _Damn it! You sound like an idiot. What are you thinking?.._. Negative thoughts continued to run through his head, but they didn't stop his near desperate search for the brown-eyed girl.  
"WEN-"

He stopped dead in his tracks as he saw her, standing alone in the dark corridor, face covered and shoulders shaking. _Great job you big oaf, you made her cry... _Calling himself every insult he could think of, he told himself he should just turn and walk away. What the Hell does Wendy Simms want with a man like him anyway? Stepping back, he looked down at his feet. Half turning he started to walk solemnly away when he heard Wendy call his name. Surprised, he turned back and looked into her beautiful smiling face. He stared at her, confused, as she continued to laugh.

"You're... you're laughing." He stated stupidly. Biting her lip in attempt to quiet her giggling, she started walking towards him.

"Do you have any idea how stupid you sound?" She asked, not waiting for an answer before wrapping her arms around him and leading him into a deep kiss. After a few long seconds, she finally broke away and smiled up at him. "I can't stay mad at you. I even TRIED. I just... can't." Her smile widened as she released her grip on him, guiding her hand down to his. She looked at him expectantly for a few seconds as realization of what was going on slowly seeped through his head. A small grin began to creep across his face. Wendy said something about needing to get back to work, that didn't quite register until she began walking away.

"Wait," he started, "what about, um, after work, maybe we can... um... dinner?" David couldn't remember the last time he felt so stupid, yet also couldn't remember ever feeling so happy. Wendy turned back and stared at him, her smile never leaving her face.  
"Dinner sounds good," she nodded, before turning again to make her way back to DNA.

David Hodges watched her walk away, smiling to himself. "Dinner." He repeated happily, and with a little skip, he whistled his way back to work.


End file.
